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Markakis leaves game with injury (O's win 5-4)

The good feeling that developed from the Orioles taking a 3-2 lead has vanished from Camden Yards.

CC Sabathia drilled Nick Markakis on the left hand with a 93 mph fastball with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Markakis immediately jumped out of the batter's box, shaking his hand, as head athletic trainer Richie Bancells and manager Buck Showalter raced out of the dugout.

Bancells removed Markakis' batting glove, checked the hand and walked him into the dugout and through the tunnel.

Nate McLouth pinch-ran for Markakis and stayed in the game in left field, with Lew Ford moving to right.

Markakis had struck out and singled against Sabathia. He began the night hitting .333 with 15 doubles, two triples, five homers, 28 RBIs, 33 runs scored and an .875 OPS in 53 games in the leadoff spot.

Markakis underwent surgery in January to repair a torn abdominal muscle and made his first career trip to the disabled list, retroactive to May 30, after breaking the hamate bone in his right hand. He returned to the lineup on July 13.

Markakis was drilled by a pitch on his left biceps muscle Monday in Toronto and still hadn't regained full range of motion in his arm, though he continued to play.

I'll pass along any updates received here at Camden Yards.

Update:Darren O'Day replaced Joe Saunders with two on and two outs in the top of the sixth and struck out Russell Martin and pinch-hitter Curtis Granderson. O'Day has let only six of 37 inherited runners score this season.

Saunders allowed two runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings, with two walks and two strikeouts. He threw 101 pitches, 65 for strikes.

CC Sabathia has allowed a season-high three home runs tonight, including J.J. Hardy's 19th leading off the bottom of the sixth that increased the Orioles' lead to 4-2. Hardy is 7-for-17 lifetime against Sabathia.

Still no word on Markakis.

Update II: Lew Ford singled to score Adam Jones, who followed Hardy's home run with a double.

Orioles 5, Yankees 2.

Ford was 7-for-36 lifetime against Sabathia before tonight. He's 2-for-3 with a home run and an RBI single.

Ford has three homers and four RBIs with the Orioles.

Tonight's attendance: 46,067, the seventh sellout this season.

The Orioles drew 1,755,461 last season. They're up to 1,778,041 this season. That's more.

Still no word on Markakis.

Update III: The MASN cameras showed Markakis in the Orioles' dugout with his left hand in a soft cast. It looks like his thumb is wrapped.

I can't imagine that the news we're still waiting for is going to be good.

Alex Rodriguez homered off Pedro Strop with two outs in the top of the eighth inning to reduce the Orioles' lead to 5-3.

A walk and single followed, and manager Buck Showalter called upon left-hander Brian Matusz, who retired Curtis Granderson on a foul pop up to catcher Taylor Teagarden.

Strop has been scored upon in four of his last six outings, with six runs allowed. Also in that span is the Sept 1 game in New York, when he walked two batters and didn't record an out. He also didn't record an out Thursday night while being charged with two runs.

Darren O'Day struck out three in 1 2/3 perfect innings before Showalter brought in Strop.

Update IV: The Yankees loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth and scored once, but Jim Johnson induced a double-play grounder from Mark Teixeira, who dived into first base, to give the Orioles a 5-4 win.

The Yankees had runners on the corners with one out after a fielder's choice grounder from Nick Swisher. Teixeira, not running at full speed after coming off the disabled list today, sent a roller to second baseman Robert Andino, who started the 4-6-3 DP. Very close play at first.

Johnson has 42 saves. The Orioles are 62-0 when leading after the seventh and 25-7 in one-run games.